Automobile jack



May 7, 1929. M. J', HATFILD n AL 1,711,565

AUTOMOBILE JACK "if 53Min/kots Inox we gs,

May 7, 1929 M. J. HATx-n-:LD ET AL 1,711,565

AUTOMOMLE JACK Filed April l2, 1926 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 which may be controlled by a ratei/mamey 7, ieee.

trusts MAURICE J.

HATFIELID AND ELMER W. CRABBE, 0F BRIDGEPORT, CONNECTICUT, .AS-

A. CORPORATION OF CONNECTICUT.

AUTOMOBILE JACK.

Application filed April 12,

r1`his invention relates to a jacking system for vehicles, and has for an object to provide an improved jacking system which is permanently attached to the vehicle and person Within the vehicle to raise any Wheel, or all of them, oif the ground, and may also be controlled from the vehicle for lowering it and retracting the jack mechanism to its normal inoperative position.

It is also an object of the invention to. provide a device of this character which will' be of simple construction and positive 1n operation, which will not be unsightly in use, is of sturdy construction and is not likely to be easily gotten out of order in use.

It is also an object to provide an improved control mechanism for this type of device Which may be operated by the operator without leaving the vehicle, and in which the pressure mechanism foroperating the lifting devices is also employed for retracting these devices to the normal ineffective position.

l-Vith the foregoing and other objectsin View, we have devised a construction, one

form of which is shown in the accompanying drawing forming a part of this specification, similar reference characters being employed throughout the various figures to indicate corresponding elements. ln these drawings,

Fig. 1 is a. top plan view in' outline of a niotor vehicle showing our improved jacking system applied thereto, the illustration being somewhat diagrainmatical.

Fig. 2 is a transverse section through an individual jack in the raised or retracted position.

Fig. 3 is a vertical section through a jack taken on a plane substantially at right angles to Fig. 2 and showing the jack extended in the lifting position. I

Figs. 4 and 5 are detail views on a smaller scale illust-rating diii'erent Ways Which may be employed to mount the jacks in position.

1 Fig. 6 is a side elevation of the motor and pump With a portion of the drive housing broken' away.

Fig. 7 vis a front elevation of the control mechanism.

Fig. 8 is a section thereof substantially on line 8-8 of Fig. 7 showing its mechanism in 1926. Serial No. 101,283.

position to cause a jack to be extended to lifting position.

9 is a similar view of the left hand portion of the mechanism of. Fig. 8 Showing the control valve in position to cause retraction of a' jack to its inoperativeposition.

Fig. 1() is a detail sectional view of an automatic safety device to stop the motor when the pressure in Ia jack reaches a certain amount, and

Fig. 11 is an elevation of the switch mechanism controlling the operation of the motor.

In the drawings we have shown our device as applied to a motor vehicle, but it Will be understood that it is not necessarily limited to a vehicle of this type. 1n Fig. 1 the chassis frame of the vehicle is indicated at 12, wheels 13, and frontand rear axles at 14 and 15 respectively. in applying this system to a vehicle of this type it is preferred to mount a lifting jack, indicated at 16, on the axles adjacent each of the four wheels so that if desired each wheel may be lifted independently, as where it is desired to change a tire. The najor portion of the system is preferably mounted under the body or the hood and comprises a reservior or receptacle 17 for liquid such as oil, a pump 18 driven by any suitable means such as a small electric motor 19, a control mechanism indicated as a Whole at 20 and preferablyinounted on the dashor in any other position easily accessible to the operator, and a safety device 21 to render the mechanism practically fool proof.

The jacks are preferably constructed substantially as illustrated -in Figs. 2 and 3 and are preferably mounted on the under sides of the axles. In the forni shown they comprise an outer shell 2, preferably cylindrical, and -it is open at its under side. Thisshell is' also preferably mounted so as to have a limited tilting movement with respect to its support 23. Within the shell is a central con'iparatively small cylinder 24 extending at its 'upper end between lugs 25 on the support and to which it is pivoted by means of a pin 26. This pin 26 has a passage 27 therethrough communicating with the passage within the cylinder 24 and is connected at its outer end by any suitable means with a pipe 28 for the liquid under pressure for operating the jack. The support 23 may be mounted on the vehicle in various ways but is preferably clamped to the under side of the axle by the bolts 29 for clamping the springs to the axles.

In Figs. 4 and 5 we have shown slightly different ways of mounting the jack. In Fig. 4 abracket 30 has an end 31 wrapped around one of the lower flanges of the axle and is secured to the under side of this axle by the screws 32. It has an upwardly and laterally extending portion 33 to which the jack is secured. In Fig. 5 the support is mounted directly on the under side of the axle by means of screws 34 passing through the flanges of the axle..

" IVe provide means for preventing the jack rattling when not in use.

For this purpose we provide a pair of spring pressed plungers 35 pressing on the top of t-he shell on opposite sides of its pivot with springs 36 holding them in this position. The pressure of the springs may be adjusted by the threaded plugs 37. The jack proper comprises a plurality of telescoping cylindrical sections 38, 39, 40 and 41. In the drawing we have four of these sections in addition to the central section 24 but, of course, the number may be varied if desired, and each section with the exception of the lower section, has an outwardly extending flange 42 fitting the inner walls of the next lower and larger section,

and each section also hassan inwardly extending flange 43 on its upper end fitting the outer wall of the next higher' and smaller v section. Each of the flanges42 are provided with grooves holding a packing 44 to i the outer wall 48 of this plug is convex so prevent leakage of the liquid during the movement of the section, but the engaging surfaces are ground to fit with grinding material so that when the Sections are extended the innery surfaces of the flanges 42 and 43 are self sealing as Well as forming limit stops to prevent separation of the sections. The two sections 38 and 39 are also preferably provided. wi th plates 45 and 46 at their upper ends and projecting beyond the outer diameters of these sections to form shoulders to engage the upper end of the next lower section to prevent these sections passing by and separating when they are drawn into each other into the nested position. The lower section 41 is closed at its lower end byfa plug 47, preferably threaded into the section, and

that it may rock on the ground or floor to ive a solid support. This surface may also be provided with calks or lugs 49, to -give a rigid support when all four wheels are lifted from the floor. It is to be noted in the con- -struction shown that the largest section is the lower'section which engages the ground or floor 50, and therefore, it gives a larger supporting surface where it is required espe- Fig. 2,*but in order to cially when used on the road where the road material is apt to'be soft. This is also the proper arrangement from the mechanical standpoint. In ordinary use we believethat the suction ofthe oil will hold the sections in the elevatedor nestedy position shown in prevent an possibility of their shaking down, especially where a leak might develop in the system, we provide independent means for holding them in this position. For this purpose the lower section 41 is provided wlthl a, groove 51 in its outer wall which is adapted to'receive the inclined ends 52 of spring pressed latch ins 53 mounted in the side walls of the shel 22. These pins are held in the inner position by springs 54 andl effectively operate to hold the sections elevated. It will` be obvious, however, that pressure within the cylinder sections when liquid is pumped into them will force the sections outwardly as the latch pins may yield laterally. The upper wall 55 of the flange on the lower section is inclined so that any dirt which might collect thereon will drop oli'.

- The control mechanism is shown in Figs. 7 to 11 and comprises two valves 56 and 57 preferably mounted on the dash. These valves are mounted in a easing 58 which has a front plate 59 fitted in the dash and has suitable indications 60 and 61 mounted thereon to indicate in what positions the valves are placed. The pressure for operating-the jacks is furnished from any suitable force pump such as a hand pump, a motor operated pump, or a pump driven fromthe trans? mission, but we prefer to use a having 'a pair of reciprocating 'plungers 62 which are driven from a small electric'motor 19 having any suitable driving connection with these plungers, such as a worm 63 meshing with a gear 64 driving -two cams, 65 bearing on the-ends o f the plungers` with springs 66 to hold the ends of the'plungers against these cams. The plungers will also have suitable stuffing boxes which are not shown as this is the ordinary construction. As these plungers may be relatively` small and not much'larger than the conduits leading from the pump, a high ressure maybe secured with a small expen and thus a relatively small motor which ma be easily operated by the usual storage bag' tery 67 of the car may be used.

It will, of course, be understood that there is a supply pipe38 leading to each jack and the selective valve '56 is provided with four outlet passages\\68, preferably spaced about ninety degrees? from each other, and connected to the 'respective conduits 28. The rotatable element 69 of this valve' is` connected witha supply pipe 70 and has a passage 71 fromthls pipe leading through the lateral wall of the rotary element in the plane of the passages 68, so that, by rotating iture of power,

of these indications it indicates the passagey 71 is in communication with the proper outlet for the jack indicated. There may be a detent linger used or'the pointer may comprise this finger coacting with depressions 73in the front of the plate to hold the valve' 1n proper position to bring the passages in alignment. A suitable handle 7a may be provided for operating the valve and when the point is opposite the indication (N) it indicates the valve is in neutral posit-ion.

The supply pipe 70 leads to a passage 75 in the casing of the control valve 57, there being two lateral outlets 76 and 77 from this passage. This casing also has a passage 78 connected by a pipe 79 to the reservoir or receptacle 17. This passage 78 has two spaced out-lets 80 and 81. The valve 57 also has a rotary plug 82 which has a passage comprising connected angularly disposed sections 83 and 84 opening through the lateral walls of the plug. The' plug also has a chamber 85 which communicates with lateral openings 86, 87, 88 and 89 passing through the lateral walls of the plug. The casing 5,7 of this valve is also provided With an outlet opening 90 in the plane of the passage 83-84 connected by means of a pipe 91 with the inlet or suction side of the pump 18 and another passage in the plane of the openings 86 and 88 connected to the outlet pipe 92 of the pump. 1t will be noted from Fig. 8 that the passage 83-84 is in the plane of the openings and 76, the opening 87 is in the plane of the opening 77, the openings 86 and 88 are in the plane of the passage connected to the discharge pipe 92, and the opening 89 is in the plane of the opening 81. The plug 82 is operated by a lever 93 and has a pointer 94 to cooperate with the indications 61 to indicate the position of the valve, indicating that the valve is in position to pump oil to the jacks to raise the car, (L) indicating that the valve is in position to retract the jack to lower the car and (N) being the neutral position.

Connected to the rear end of the valve plug 82 so as to be operated simultaneously therewith, is a movable switch element 95 adapted to engage and bridge electrical contacts 96 and 97 connected by suitable leads 98 to the source of current and by leads 99 to` the motor. The contacts 96 are preferably provided' with V-shaped recesses 100 adapted to receive similarly shaped spring contacts 101 carried by the switch element 95 to assist in indicating and re# taining the valve in various positions with the passages properly in alignment. These contacts are also preferably provided with lugs 102 on one side thereof to form stops to limit the movements of the member 95 and also the valve member.

In operation, member 69 is first shifted to bring the passage 71 in alignment with the proper outlet passage 68 to the jack which it is desired to operate, this position being indicated by the pointery 72. The valve 82 is then swung to the position shown in Figs. 7 and 8. This movement will close the circuit through one of the set of contacts 96-97 to the motor 19 and will pump oil from the reservoir 17 through the valve 82, pipe 70 to valve 5G, and to the jack selected, which will extend the same to the position shown in Fig. 3 and raise that portion of the vehicle. When the pressure in the jack reaches a certain amount the safety device shown in Fig. 10 will operate tobreak the circuit to the motor and stop the motor so that the pressure cannot become high enough in the s 'stem to do any damage. This safety device is preferably connected to the outlet pipe 92 from the pump and comprises a cylinder 103 in which is a plunger 104, the cylinder being in communication with the pipe 82. This plunger has an enlarged portion or flange 105 with a spring 106 tending to hold the plunger in its lowest position. Mounted at the upper end of the casing 107 is an electrical contact 108 car- 'ried on an insulating support 109, and this contact is connecteda in the leads 99 from the hand controlledswitch tow the motor. The plunger 104 also carries a contact 110 mounted on an insulating block 111 which is in the other side of the lead from the hand controlled switch to the motor. It will, therefore, be apparent that when the pressure reaches a certain amount the plunger 104 will move upwardly to separate the contacts 108 and 110 to break the circuit and stop the motor. After the circuit is once broken by this device the motor cannot be started again to pump more oil until the valves have either been changed to lower the jack or to pump oil to some other jack. This will render the system practically fool proof.

lf now it is desired to lower the jack all that is necessary is to shift the control valve 82 to bring the handle 93 into the dotted line position of Fig. 7. This will bring the movable plug 82 of the valve to the position shown in Fig. 9, and will bring the switch member 95 in engagement with the other set of contacts 96-97 to start the motor as before. The valve 82, however, when in the position shown in Fig. 9 re verses the direction of flow of the liquid through the valve 56 and pumps it from the jack back into the reservoir 17. This is because the inlet passage 83 in the valve 82 is now in communication with the opening 90 connected to the inlet pipe 91 of the pump and the passage 84 is in communication with the passage 75 through the opening 76. Thus the suction side of the pump is connected tothe pipe and pipe 28 leading to the jack, the other opening 77 to the passage being closed. The oil is pum d back through the ipe 92 the same as w en extending the jac ,v but the opening 86 in the valve 82 is now in communication with the pipe 92, and the opening 89 is in alignment with the opening 81 leading to the passage 78 connected to the pipe 79 leading ,to the reservoir. The opening 8O from the passage 78 is closed, and therefore, the passage 78 is now in communicationwith the outlet from the pump. When the valve 82 is in the neutral position intermediate the two positions shown in Fig. 7 the device will not operate as the various passages through the valve are closed and the circuit to the motor is open, the switch member being in the position shown in Fig. 11. It will, of course, be apparent that the inlet and outlet connections to the pump will be provided with the usual non-return valves such as the spring pressed ball valves (I) and (0) in the suction and discharge pipes respectively.

It will be apparent from the foregoing description that the device is simple in con-- struction and will voccupy a r-very small amount of space on the vehicle. With the control mechanism shown the operator can raise any or all four wheels of the vehicle from the ground and again'retract the jacks Awithout leaving his seat, and there is no danger of breaking any part of the system if the motor is run too long. As the jacks are retracted by the action ofthe pump this gives a4 positive operation of the Jacks, and therefore, no reliance is laid' on springs and such devices for retract-ing the jacks. As such devices are always unreliable the applicants device is a vmaterial improvement in this respect overv the old devices. Furthermore, the cylinder sections of the jack are securely locked in the raised position by the latch pins 53.v With this device, during bad weather the driver does not need to leave the car to jack up or lower the car, nor is it necessary to crawlv under the car to place a jack in position. Also, as an?1 part of this systemV which is exposed is re atively small and is placed in a position which is not prominent on the car, it presents no unsightly appearance.

Having thus set forth the nature of our invention, what we claim is:

1`. In combination, a jack, means for securing the jack to a vehicle for raising the ve.-

hicle, a liquid receptacle mountable on thev vehicle, a pump connected with said receptacle, a power means for |operating the pump, a control valve arranged when in one position to connect the suctionl side of the pump ,with the receptacle and the discharge side with the jack and when in another position to reverse these connections,l and a control device for the power means connected with said valve for'simultaneous operation therepump, a control valve arranged when 1n oneJ positionv to connect the suction sidevof the pump with the receptacle and the discharge side with the jack and .when in another position to reverse these connections, and preasure operated means to break the circuit to said motor when the'pressure in the ja reaches a predetermined limit.

3. In combination, a plurality of jacks, means for securing the jacks to a vehicle for raising the vehicle, 'a liquid receptacle mountable on the vehicle, a pump conn with the receptacle, a ower means for operating. the pump, a se ective valve for controlling the flow of liquidto the respective jacks, a control valve arranged when in one position to connect the suction side of the pump with the receptacle and the discharge with said selective valve'and when in another positlon to reverse these connections, and a control means for the power means connected with the control valve for simul- 'I taneous operation therewith.

. 4. .In combination, a jack for raising a vehicle comprising a shell, means for securing the shell to the vehicle, said shell being open on its underside, a plurality of telescoping cylinders of progressively increasing diameter adapted to be nested in said shell and extended downwardly vtherefrom with the outer cylinder resting on a support, and means for pumping' liquid into said cylinders to extend the same and for withdrawing the liquid from said cylinders to raise them by suction into nested relation.

5.. In combination, .a jack for raising a vehicle, means for securing the' jack thereto and comprising a plurality of telescoping cylinders progressively increasing in diameter with the larger one at the free end when .extended and the inner and .smaller one stationary, the larger cylinder having its Vfree the vehicle, a pump connected with said r'eceptacle, a connectlon from the pump to the smaller cylinder, and a control valve arranged when in one position to connect the suction side of the pump with the rece tacle and the outlet with the jack to force iquid into it to extend the cylinders and'in another position to reverse these connections so that the pump will withdraw liquid from the jack and draw the cylinders into nested relation by suction.

6. In combination, a jack for raising a vehicle comprising a bracket, means for securing the bracket to the vehicle, a shell pivoted to the bracket and open at its under side, spring pressed means engaging' the shell on opposite sides of its pivot tending to maintain itin a central upright position, a pluralcuring the shell to the vehicle and open at its under side, a plurality of telescoping cylinders of progressively increasing diameter normally mounted in nested relation within the shell and arranged so that when extended the larger cylinder is at the lower free end and adapted to restA on a support, said largerI cylinder being provided with a groove' in its outer side walls, spring pressed plugs carried b the shell to seat 1n said groove to yielda 1y hold the cylinders with- 1n the shell, and means for forcing liquid into` the cylinders to extend the same and for withdrawing the liquid from the cylinders to retract them into nested relation by suction.

8. In combination, a jack, means lfor securing the jack to a vehicle for raising it,y

said jack comprising a plurality of telescoping cylinders adapted to be extending downwardly with the end cylinder resting on a support, a pump, a reservoir, connections between the pump, the reservoir and the interior of the jack cylinders, and controlling means for connecting the pump to the jack to force liquid from the reservoir to the jack to extend it or to Withdraw liquid from the jack to the reservoir and raise the jack cylinders to nested relation by suction.

In testimony whereof we aiiix our signatures.

MAURICE J. HATFIELD. ELMER W. CRABBE. 

